


The Eevee Cafe

by MissWonnykins, Moonfang182Magic



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Background Relationships, God does a thing, M/M, Mpreg, Slow Burn, Warning: MPreg, You Have Been Warned, past bullying, second warning
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-25
Updated: 2020-06-27
Packaged: 2021-02-28 01:48:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22895908
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissWonnykins/pseuds/MissWonnykins, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moonfang182Magic/pseuds/Moonfang182Magic
Summary: Champion Ash Ketchum needs a place to hide from all of the paparazzi and fans that keep chasing him. He decided to hide in an Eevee cafe in Viridian City, but soon he will realize that this decision will change his life forever...“Gary?”
Relationships: Kasumi | Misty/Kenji | Tracey Sketchit, Ookido Shigeru | Gary Oak/Satoshi | Ash Ketchum
Comments: 6
Kudos: 104





	1. Reunions

In the streets of Viridian City a tall, raven haired, beanie wearing man was running from a crowd of fans, press, and tiny children asking for his autograph. The Pikachu clinging onto his shoulders for dear life keeps glaring at the pursuers behind them.

This is Ash Satoshi Ketchum. Age 25, 6’1 ft, healthy stubble on his sharp chin, and Champion of the three whole regions. Very popular for being the youngest champion at age 11, for the Orange Islands, at age 19 for the Alola Region, and at age 22 for the Kanto Region. Another accomplishment of his was becoming the 8th Frontier Brain after winning the Frontier at age 15. He’s very popular with the fangirls and fanboys with how well he’s grown into a permanent tan and a constant and reasonable muscular figure… he’s terrified of them.

At this current moment the champion is running for his life. He wanted to check in with Ritchie, the new Viridian City gym leader, and maybe get lunch together. He didn’t expect to be spotted right before he entered the gym. So he booked it before the questions and questionable fan items start being thrown at him, and now he’s lost because he hasn’t visited the city in quite some time.

“Where to hide? Where to hide?” Was being chanted under his breath. The Pokémon on his shoulders turned to his best friend and pointed to some of the shops they were passing.

“Can’t! Already tried before! Owners will rat us out for the spotlight!” The Pokémon drowned at the answer but accepted it, until he noticed a certain cafe further down the road they were going down. Pikachu started to pull on his trainer’s hair and when he finally got his attention he pointed to the cafe.

“The Eevee Cafe”

A flash of something passed through Ash remembering all of his friends that own Eevees, before settling on one that he hasn’t seen in over 13 years. Auburn hair, green eyes, cocky smile, a green and yellow pendant, and an Eevee at their feet. Finally snapping out of memory lane; he made a decision and released his own Eevee onto his left shoulder.

“Bree?” Quickly looking around the Evolution pokemon assessed the situation. “You know what to do girl.” A nod was given in return.

“EEV!! VAA!” The tiny Pokémon used Sandattack on the area behind them in perfect accuracy. Soon the crowd behind stopped to get all the sand out of their eyes, successfully losing the still running champion to the attack.

“Thank you baby girl~” cooed Ash to the Eevee, who rubbed against his scratchy cheek before returning to her Pokéball. Pikachu gave one last silent raspberry at the out of sight crowd, making Ash laugh.

When he finally reached the Pokémon themed store, he quickly threw the door open and rushed inside, the door slamming shut behind him with the bell ringing loudly. Ash soon finished catching his breath and looked up to see all of the customers and Pokémon staring at him.

“S-saw one of my exs… hehe…” at the statement some people nodded in sympathy and others just went back to their drinks or food. Ash let out a breath of relief and quickly adjusted his beanie, sunglasses, and face mask to keep his identity hidden while heading to one of the tables in the back near the playroom area.

Finally off his legs the trainer placed his head into crossed arms on the table. He didn’t move for what felt like hours but was only two minutes, in that time he felt Pikachu’s weight leave his shoulders. Shrugging his shoulders he lowered his mask to breath better and soon noticed through his bangs and arms a pair of **tight** black pants standing next to his table.

“An ex huh? What kind?” A smooth and honey-like voice fell onto Ash’s ears and he shuddered at how beautiful it felt to hear it. He coughed and shrugged his shoulders again. “Ya know… a relationship that didn’t work out… too much arguing.” He started pulling out his ass to keep the stranger at bay.

“Oh really? Family member? Old friend? Ooorrr~” a giggle was heard, _holy shit that sounds beautiful please do it again_ , and out of nowhere a hand came and took his sunglasses off his face. The raven haired trainer gasped and sat up fully to look at his attacker.

“Or maybe an old old rival?~” standing right in front of was a 5’9 ft tall man with spiky but soft looking auburn hair, green twinkling eyes, a necklace that looks like one half of a pokeball, and a slim figure with hips and thighs that make any Medicham jealous. His very own Pikachu sitting suggly on the stranger’s shoulder. A voice rang through his head at the sight…

_”Hey there Ashy-Boy!”_

“Gary?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is an au that me and MissWonnykins made together and I decided to take the helm and write it! Please please check out their own stories because many of the ideas in here are from her~ I will be posting art of this au on my tumblr, moonfang182-magic so check those out to!!
> 
> Please comment your thoughts and what you liked about it so I can read them~


	2. After Hours?

“Gary?”

Said man stared at the gaping champion with pure amusement on his face. Pikachu giggled into his front paws at his trainer’s embarrassment. Ash’s mind wasn’t even processing what he’s seeing but he soon places a smile on his face.

“W-wow! It’s really you, Gary Oak. It’s been like 10 years, right?” He starts to fidget with his gloves and jacket sleeves.

“13 years actually.” Ash gasped up at Gary in shock. “No way!! W-well sit down! Tell me about what you’ve been doing during that time.” He patted the table in the direction of the seat right across from him at the table.

The green eyed man chuckled while shaking his head. He picked up the Pokémon that was on his shoulder and moved him to the table. “As much as I would love to; I can’t sadly…”

“Oh were you already leaving?”

“Oh Ash.” A laugh makes its way through Gary’s body,  _ and holy shit he needed to hear that again _ , and he quickly walked closer to the seated trainer. “Look at my shirt Bucko.”

Ash leaned in and saw a small white logo on the breast pocket of Gary’s brown shirt. It was an Eevee head and neck fluff winking with the name “The Eevee Cafe” under it. The gears turned in Ash’s brain for a solid 30 seconds before it finally clicks. “OH! You work here!”

“Close but no. I own this cafe Ashy-boy~”

“Wait really?!” Many heads turned towards the pair at the exclamation from Ash. The raven hair blushed and turned back towards the standing cafe owner.  _ Cough _ “soooo maybe I can come back after hours and have dinner with ya? I’ll bring it, my treat.”

In response to his proposal Gary raised an eyebrow at the trainer. He then tilted his head to the side and thought it over. “I’ll take you up on that offer. The shop closes in 4 hours, Big Guy. Anyhow I still have customers to serve so you can either order a drink or pastry at the counter or schedule some playroom time with the Eevees.”

Ash dumbly nodded along and let his eyes follow the brunette as he walked walked away to go back to the counter that is to the right of the entrance. His head turned towards the Pikachu on the table. “Wow… he sure has changed…”

“chuuu~” The champion raised an eyebrow at the Pokémon. “It's not like that Buddy.” was huffed in response.

The mouse Pokémon rolled his eyes and soon pointed his tail to a pedestal with a clipboard and card swiper on it. This pedestal was in front of the playroom that was located at the back of the shop. Ash stared at the items before grinning and turning to his trusty companion. “May as well kill some time before grabbing some dinner, right Buddy?” With a call of agreement from the Pokémon, Ash got up and walked over to the clipboard and wrote down his name for 3 hours.

_ ‘Enough time to grab dinner from that place in Saffron that I remember him liking.’ _

The champion grinned as he swiped his card to pay for the time and watched the processed money make the gate to the playroom open. Pikachu bounced on in with Ash stopping at the gate to turn back and watch Gary give a couple their double straw milkshake. The brunette turned around and noticed Ash staring at him and in turn smirked back, making the raven blush and walk backwards into the playroom before turning around to get a look at the new area.

The playroom is a big area with plenty of beanbags and chairs to sit in while playing with the Eevees. On the right wall there are four giant feeders and water tanks for the Pokemon to eat and drink from while on the job. On the farthest back wall was a tub of toys and cute clothes to dress the Eevees up in while playing. To the left are three giant cat trees that look well loved with deep teeth and claw marks in them. The walls have a nice cream and light brown color theme to them with some light yellow stars sprinkled in the some spots. Overall it was very homey and very soft, the perfect place to play with one of cutest Pokémon alive.

As Ash sat down on an empty bean bag he looked around the room to count all the Eevees that are being played, dressed up, and fed with. 19 was his total and it made him sweat drop at the thought of caring for all these tiny Pokémon by himself. He could hardly control his Tauros herd without having to wrestle the leader to the ground. He then smirked and quickly pressed the button one of the Pokeballs that he had clipped to his belt.

His own Eevee, Bebe, came out and cried happily before looking around in confusion. She took in the room while sitting in his lap until she looked back at him with a confused look on her face. “Eva?”

“Go on and have fun with them. Just make sure your back in my arms in  **three hours,** got it?” A firm nod was his response before the tiny fox Pokémon zoomed off to play with her hopefully new friends.

The champion sighed out happily and relaxed into the bean bag more. He could get used to visiting the cafe to take some stress off his shoulders. As he thought of good times to sneak out and come back here he felt some paws mess with his back leg. Lifting his head he saw an Umbreon staring at him with clearly happy eyes. Her coat looks shiny and perfect, just like he remembers her being.

“Hey there Umbreon. Long time no see huh?” He watched the Moonlight Pokémon sniff his resting hands and slowly get onto his lap with practiced ease, unlike some of her younger pre-evolutions in the shop. “Oh I see, you’re trapping me here? Well I’m caught for the next three hours if you want.” His only response was a soft purr before she fell asleep. Ash chuckled and decided to people and Pokémon watch for the time being.

He could see Pikachu playing dress up with five Eevees and two little girls near the back wall. Bebe was trying out the food on the right wall while talking to one of the other Eevees. He slowly thought if all of the Eevees have individual names, it would make roll call so much easier. For the next hour he watched his two Pokémon play with all Eevees, other small Pokémon the other customers brought in, and the other customers themselves.

A giggle was heard from his right; turning in that direction gave him the sight of Gary leaning over the gate petting two of the Eevees while looking directly at Ash. A raised eyebrow was sent his way, making him laugh enough to jostle the sleeping Pokemon in his lap awake. Umbreon glared at her human pillow before turning her gaze over to her own trainer, making the brunette flinch and hurry off to work.

“Still keeping him in check?” A soft and annoyed sounding  _ “Um.”  _ was all he needed to know that yes, Umbreon did make sure everything was in place. He chuckled and started to gently pet the beautiful black and yellow fur of the Pokémon, making said Pokémon fall back to sleep.

Soon two hours of pure relaxation and watching his two buddies goof around passed and the champion had to get up and grab dinner for him and Gary. The trainer patted the relaxing Pokémon on his lap; getting the message Umbreon got up and trotted over to the water feeders to get something to drink after her nap. Ash stood up and stretched his limbs and saw that Pikachu and Bebe were already standing at attention. “Good babies~” cooed their trainer as he returned Bebe and let Pikachu jump onto his shoulder. He was soon out of the playroom and heading towards the counter, where Gary was cleaning some glasses.

“Hello Gary.” Was his greeting as he stopped and leaned onto the counter to see Gary a bit more close.  _ Wait are those freckles on his neck?  _ The other man turned to Ash and smirked his normal cocky but also newly gentle smirk.

“Hello Ashy-Boy~ Did you have fun? I’m sure Umbreon enjoyed your visit.” Gary snickered at Ash’s twitched eyebrow at the comment. “I still got it, it seems~. So what can I get you to go?”

Ash smirked and rattled off his order. “A Triple, Venti, Non-Fat, Half-Sweet, Latte with Caramel and 10 pumps of Vanilla.”

“.....” the cafe owner stared at Ash for an entire minute. He blinked, finally breaking out of his trance, and chuckled. “Wow  **okay** ! I haven’t heard an order like that sense Wallace and Steven visited Viridian last year. I’ll get right on that.”

Turning around Gary started to prepare Ash’s order in a to-go cup. While the man was moving around behind the counter, Ash watched with intensity as he moved around so easily to each machine. Pikachu rolled his eyes at his human’s always strange order but cheered for Gary anyways. Soon a to-go cup was placed on the counter and a card was exchanged back and forth.

“Can I get your Holocast or phone number?”

“Sure. Here you go.” A scribbled on piece of paper was handed to the champion. Gary smiled sweetly at Ash, making the taller man blush.

“Will be back in time for closing! I’m gonna grab dinner.” The raven haired man winked at Gary before putting on his sunglasses and heading out the door. Ash could swear he heard giggling coming from behind him as he walked out.

After going through some back roads Ash found a small square to release his flyer for the day.

Talonflame cawed loudly and stretched his wings to the fullest. The Scorching Pokemon turned to look at his trainer while the human and Pikachu got onto his back.

“To Saffron City Buddy.” The bird Pokémon chirped in response before finally taking into the air with one strong flap of his wings.


	3. Catching Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ash has returned to the store with dinner and Gary is all too happy to finally catch up with an old friend.
> 
> Stories are shared from both sides about how the years have been treating them with many laughs and only a few hiccups. Some things are learned about each other and others... are stuff from long ago.

Ash watched from the other side of the road as the last customer left the cafe for the day. He could see Gary start to close up shop by counting all the Eevees in the playroom and checking the clipboard. The trainer decided to wait for the cafe owner to be mostly done and sat down on the sidewalk with Pikachu in his lap and Talonflame still out to preen his wings after those long flights.

Soon two Eevees took notice of the familiar man from a few hours ago after they jumped onto one of the tables next to the window. The two tiny pokemon started to bark and yip at the stranger from across the road.

The brunette turned around from the table he was wiping to check on Sarah and Miles, seeing that they were yipping at something outside he walked over to check the street. When his eyes finally landed on his childhood friend sitting down on the sidewalk he chuckled and walked to the door with the two Eevees following. Opening the door and leaning against the wall Gary watched his Pokémon rush over to Ash for more pets and attention.

“Ah! Oh yes hi! I see you noticed me little buddies!” The champion soon was on his back laughing and trying to shield his face from tiny paws and licks. Pikachu watched from the back of his Kalos teammate giggling the whole time while the flying-fire type just watched in amusement.

“Hey you two! Get back inside and help clean up!” A whistle was heard after the command and the two puppy Pokémon got off of Ash and ran back to their trainer.

“Thanks, never thought I see death in the form of tiny adorable Eevees.” Chuckling as he got up, Ash grabbed the plastic bags of food that contained dinner. With both in one hand, Pikachu on his shoulder, and Talonflame back into his pokeball, the raven haired trainer walked over to the cafe and his friend.

Gary looked down at the bags in Ash’s hand and gasped with a smile. The other trainer smirked at his reaction.

“Oh my gosh! Is that from the place in Saffron? I haven’t been there in years! How did you-“

“Oh I remembered from your 7th and 8th birthday trips there. You begged the Prof to take you out of the town and fell in love with the sushi bowl restaurant we went to.”

Both laughed at the memory before falling silent just looking at each other in comfortable silence. Gary broke the staring match with a nod of his head to the inside of the shop. “Well come on in, don’t want you to freeze out there.”

Ash followed the young man inside and watched in fascination at all the Eevees helping clean up with Umbreon watching over them. He turned his head to notice an Alakazam standing behind the counter counting the money and typing into a tablet. The psychic Pokémon looked up at the trainer looking at her and waved a friendly hello, getting a wave back in return from said trainer and in addition Pikachu.

The champion decided to lean against the door and watched Gary work on cleaning any areas his little helpers couldn’t reach on their own. He was very impressed with how well his friend was able to get all his Pokémon to work together like an oiled machine. Kinda like…

“-Your team builds.” This quiet comment was loud enough for the brunette to turn and look at Ash with a confused look. The Kanto native flinched at what he said and looked down at the floor.

“You work so effortlessly with your Pokémon… it reminded me of how you always balanced out your teams to knock down any opponent.” Gary’s cheeks gained a tint of pink at the comment and he giggled. “Of course the one thing you remember me by is my battle strategies.”

The man looked up from the floor to look at the other with a small smile and honest eyes.

“I wouldn’t mind getting to learn some new things to remember.”

Gary chuckled and smiled back.

* * *

“And then out of nowhere Aerodactyl came flying down with Conny, Peter, Hannah, and Jayden gently in her claws. The whole litter was dirty and covered in soot from when they jumped into the dig site! It was then I learned I needed to find a safer job if I wanted to keep them.”

The two trainers and their Pokémon had moved to the apartment upstairs above the cafe to have dinner and share stories. The place had a special homey feel to it, maybe because of all the Pallet Town exclusive blankets and decorations or maybe the herbs growing in a windowsill that Ash remembers his mom having in her garden. There were pictures that spanned their toddler years to the Silver Conference and then beyond that. The living room was a bit packed with a sofa, coffee table, chair, and two cat trees but that’s where they decided to eat their food with their Pokémon around them.

Ash laughed hard at the story Gary was telling from his time on the island he interned at. He was curious about where the Eevees came from and so he listened about how Umbreon and Arcanine got together and had their first litter while Gary was still interested in Pokémon research, having to beg his grandpa and the main scientist to let him keep the litter, and the ultimate realization that he couldn’t keep the litter and keep his inter job at the same time because of how much trouble the 4 Eevees got into.

“Oh I laugh now but back then I was devastated that I couldn’t keep my dream job and my adorable grand babies at once.” The man, now dressed in a comfy light teal sweater and grey sweatpants, wiped a tear from his eye because of how much laughing he’s been doing for the past hour or so. Food already finished and dishes put away, the two friends have now curled up on opposite sides of the couch facing each with a Pokémon in both of their laps.

“Oh I could imagine! I’ve never had to deal with more than one baby Pokémon at a time so I have no idea what it’s like.” Ash gave his little mouse buddy some chin scratches while he watched Gary laugh and smile. The cafe owner looked with a curious shine in his eyes.

“Oh remember the Extreme Pokemon Race in Johto? That’s when you got your first Pokemon egg.”

“Nope. Phanpy was the second egg I hatched.” Ash smirked at his friend’s shocked face. The raven launched into the story of when he ran into Gary at the Grampa Canyon and that the Aerodactyl was actually there and how he woke up with an egg in his arms. At the end of the story the burnet was laughing into the back of the sofa with tears in his eyes. 

“Y-You actually got your Charmeleon to evolve by pure anger?! That is so stupid but so believable!” As Gary and Ash laughed together Umbreon looked at Pikachu with a bored expression that made the electric type giggle. The Moonlight Pokemon rolled her eyes at her old friend and their trainers before jumping off Gary’s lap and trotting out of the living room. This made Pikachu laugh more and Ash raised an eyebrow at Gary, which the man responded by shrugging. 

“The three that made the canyon explode. Do they still follow you and whoever you’re travelling with?”

The question made the champion pause in his laughter and stare at Gary with a scrunched up look. This made the ex-researcher frown and switch his bright expression to one of confusion and worry. Gary watched his friend look at the coffee table in thought and petting the Pokemon in his lap in silence. He decided to let the other gather his thoughts and went up to make them some drinks to try and bring back the fun mood they had before. As he went through his cabinets for the things he needed he heard some shuffling and mummers coming from the living room.

When the trainer came back with a mug of hot chocolate in each hand he saw that a Rowlet nestled into Ash’s right side with Pikachu still on his lap. Gary didn’t say anything as he handed the mug that had a big pile of whip cream to Ash and took back his seat on the other side of the couch. Both men sipped from their drinks and the burnet watched the raven haired man smile at the drink and let his Pokemon lick some of the cream. The cafe owner was halfway through his drink when he heard his friend speak.

“They stopped a few months after I became the world champ… We’re on good terms now but of course still a bit on edge around them.” The answer was said quietly and with a wobbly tone. Ash stared into his mug with a vacant look in his eyes, with Pikachu and Rowlet snuggling into Ash’s sides.

“Why? Wouldn’t them stopping being a good thing?”

The champion snapped his eyes to Gary’s face with his mouth scrunched up. The other trainer simply took a long gup of his drink while keeping eye contact with Ash. Gary raised an eyebrow, “Why is it a bad thing they stopped chasing you? I would be relieved,”

Ash shook his head softly and chuckled. “Yeah… Everyone says that, and I  _ am _ , it’s just… They’ve been chasing me for  **12 years** . 12 years of constantly looking behind your back, or keeping an eye on who you pass by in a city. So many years of them capturing my most important friend and putting myself and my other friends in constant danger.” He was glaring at his drink when he stopped talking to take a deep breath. Gary just listened to his friend rant, it seemed like he needed this.

“They are good, they have changed so much and have gotten better! But-but there is a small voice in the back of my head that says  _ “someone’s behind you!”  _ or  _ “everything’s too quiet!”  _ wherever I go. I-I’ve sometimes snapped at a random loud noise o-or flitch at someone suddenly touching me or Pikachu… So many years of eyes watching you 24/7 leaves you feeling like they will never leave even if they have…”

The trainer closed his eyes and took many deep breaths to calm himself. The two Pokemon in his lap were hugging his midsection, drink easily forgotten in his rant. Gary just sat back with a soft expression on his face, his own mug empty and now just resting in his lap. Ash looked up at Gary and smiled at the understanding look he found on his face. The other trainer smiled back and gently placed his mug on the coffee table.

“I bet some places were hard to go near after they turned over a new leaf huh?” They both laughed at the joke before Ash explained how some areas hold weird memories of the trio. The other man listens with his head resting against the back of the couch, watching his friend move his hands and make silly sound effects when storytelling. He could get used to this, having Ash over and finally rebuilding their friendship.

“Don’t get me started on when I visited Ritchie at the Viridian City Gym when it hadn’t been remodeled! Worst gym battle ever with the wires and…”

Ash trailed off when he took a look at Gary’s face and found a stiff and grimaced look, in place of one of laughter. The burnet quickly looked back at Ash and shook his head before the raven haired trainer could say anything.

“Sorry, it’s just I haven’t really been fond of the place since the last gym leader’s Pokémon knocked me out.”

Gary watched as his friend shifted through many emotions in the span of a few seconds. He recognized confusion, realization, anger, sympathy, and finally understanding. Ash nodded before taking a long drink from his mug.

“That was a huge shock if I remember right. Can’t believe a gym leader would be allowed to have a Pokémon like that in the first place. I never really asked how bad it was… did it hurt a lot?”

“Hmm, no. I wasn’t really targeted by the Pokémon more of being knocked out by the blast from its attacks. Imagine my confusion when the next thing I see is you… cradling me… against your chest.”

Gary trailed off and felt his face grow very hot at the memory of his ex-rival holding him gently but securely in his arms. He watched the raven-haired man across from him have the same reaction and responded with also quickly finishing off his drink. The brunette chuckled a bit at the sight with Pikachu and Rowlet doing the same.

Ash soon joined his companions’ laughter. They were stuck like this for a good minute before Gary sigh and wiped the stray tear from his eye while Ash took some deep breaths to stop laughing. The cafe owner watched his friend and saw how much more good looking he’s gotten over the years. That wild bush of black hair of his finally got trimmed with a nice stubble growing on a square chin. He remembered his rival being weirdly strong back in their youth and it seemed to have continued into his adult form, wow those biceps look nice- AH! What was he thinking?!

The trainer rubbed his eyelids and tried to calm down the blush on his face. He heard his counterpart snicker at him and he quickly flipped him off.

Ash laughed louder at the way his rival responded to his snickering. He watched the sharp nose scrunch up and those nice cheekbones move with his smiling. His hair being slightly messed up because of him resting his head against the couch’s back, but still looking soft and super fluffy. The raven-haired man couldn’t really deny how he viewed the other because anyone would admit that Gary Oak was a beautiful human being. The fact he got to see this side of said human being made him smile.

With his blush finally under control Gary took a look at Ash, before noticing the clock behind him on the wall. 10 pm?! Did they really spend so much time together? At his friend’s shocked look Ash turned around to see the time as well, soon mirroring the other’s expression.

“Well shit.” “Damn it.”

The two looked at each other and shared another laugh before getting up and cleaning the couch. The brunette took their mugs to the kitchen and rinsed them out before placing them in the dishwasher. The champion cleaned up any leftover trash from dinner and fixed up the couch. He also returned Rowlet to his Pokéball and had Pikachu nestled on his shoulders.

After everything was done Ash grabbed his stuff and reapplied his disguise while following Gary down to the first floor and to the door. He watched his friend unlock and open the door and turn back at him with a smile. The trainer could feel his breath leave his body fast at the sight of that soft smile and look being highlighted by the moonlight and street lamps of the avenue. It was beautiful to be a witness to.

“Thank you.”

Ash blinked and finally looked Gary in the eyes. He tilted his head as he walked over to the other man.

“Thank you for helping me back then when we were kids. And… Thank you for reconnecting with me, I’ve missed this.”

The raven-haired trainer stared at the other before smiling warmly back. He rested his right hand onto Gary’s shoulder and brought him into a hug, wrapping his left arm and other’s back. The response he got was Gary quickly wrapping his arms around Ash’s waist with a confused noise coming from him.

“It was no problem, Gary. I’m glad to have bumped into you again.”

The whisper made Gary blush the hardest he has all night and he quickly got out of the embrace. Pressing his hand against his face the brunette nodded and refused to look at his companion. He heard the other chuckle before footsteps were also heard heading outside the door into the street. He finally looked up to watch Ash release Talonflame and get on top of the Pokémon with ease.

As the Scorching Pokemon rose into the air, Ash looked back and made eye contact with Gary again. He smiled at the cafe owner and watched him smile back at him and give him a wave before closing the shop door. When the trio finally reached a good height the fly onwards, they made their trip back to the Indigo Plateau. You couldn’t see through his mask but the man was smiling non stop the entire ride. He could feel so much happiness inside him from the encounter and reconnection with Gary. Ash hoped they would meet again soon.

On the ground Gary was leaning his back against the store door with his right hand covering the bottom half of his face while the left one clenched the fabric of his sweater in the spot of his heart. His smile felt so light and not at all forced, like just the memory of tonight made him want to beam with joy. He felt so happy about meeting Ash again and finally regaining that friendship from so long ago. He prayed that they would be able to meet again soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry for making you guys wait for so long for this chapter! The sudden shift in the world made me lose some drive to finish the frankly very long chapter. I don't if I'll plan to make the rest of the chapters this long because with that it means it will take more time to finish each one.  
> Either way I hoped you enjoyed the nice chapter and tell me your thoughts and favorite moments in the comments or on my tumblr, moonfang182-magic, where I will posting more art of this story. Thank you again Wonny for being my co-writer and beta-reader for this story, you are always a help and make it so fun to write about this universe!


End file.
